Pipe Rustication Replication Question...

[ThreePipeProblems]

Hey guys, so I've been working a lot lately with restoration and rusticating. I made a standard rusticating tool, a group of sharp nails in a handle. I've been getting gorgeous craggy-style rustications. Very happy with it.

My question is this, i've got a new pipe I want to rusticate but I want to replicate the rustication style of my Savanelli Long John. You can see in photos below this wasn't done with any sort of nail or screwdriver tool. It's not that craggy style.

Appears to be more of a plethora of round indents. I really love this rustication. I'm thinking Dremel with bur bit. What do you think?



"I never guess, it's a shocking habit." -Sherlock Holmes

[RP McMurphy]

It's certainly done with a Dremel motor and burr bit. The thing to remember in doing this is to keep the cuts random and nonuniform otherwise it'll look unnatural.
I think what we're looking for is it too look as natural as possible, at least that's what I look for in rustication's. Although there are some out there that do them
quite uniform, they don't really appeal to me most of the time. If you've never done rustication, I'd practice on a scrap piece of wood or better an old useless pipe or piece of briar.

[ThreePipeProblems]

It's certainly done with a Dremel motor and burr bit. The thing to remember in doing this is to keep the cuts random and nonuniform otherwise it'll look unnatural.
I think what we're looking for is it too look as natural as possible, at least that's what I look for in rustication's. Although there are some out there that do them
quite uniform, they don't really appeal to me most of the time. If you've never done rustication, I'd practice on a scrap piece of wood or better an old useless pipe or piece of briar.

Thanks for tips! Sadly I actually don't own a dremel yet, lol. I never needed one until I got into restoration, now it seems like the most addictive tool ever.

I'll be picking one up today. Any ideas on where to get bur bits? I see some dremel come with round engraving bits. Googling "bur bit" brought up very little. Is there a more accurate terminology?

"I never guess, it's a shocking habit." -Sherlock Holmes

[RP McMurphy]

Thanks for tips! Sadly I actually don't own a dremel yet, lol. I never needed one until I got into restoration, now it seems like the most addictive tool ever.

I'll be picking one up today. Any ideas on where to get bur bits? I see some dremel come with round engraving bits. Googling "bur bit" brought up very little. Is there a more accurate terminology?

"I never guess, it's a shocking habit." -Sherlock Holmes

If your going to purchase a Dremel I suggest you get the one with Variable speed so you can control it better and if you can afford it, also get the flex cable for more comfortable handling.
Where ever you purchase one (Good hardware store, Lowe's, Home Cheapo, etc.) they should have the burr bits in stock also. The ones used on the Sav are obviously the small round/ball ones, I'd get two different sizes.

[ThreePipeProblems]

If your going to purchase a Dremel I suggest you get the one with Variable speed so you can control it better and if you can afford it, also get the flex cable for more comfortable handling.
Where ever you purchase one (Good hardware store, Lowe's, Home Cheapo, etc.) they should have the burr bits in stock also. The ones used on the Sav are obviously the small round ones, I'd get two different sizes.

Excellent. They are a tad pricey, I might have to get the extension next time. But the way I see it,look at all the money saved by restoring estate pipes. #worthit

I have a feeling I'm going to get hopelessly addicted to this dremel...

"Honey we're out of paper towels..."

"Don't worry i have a paper towel attachment for the dremel.."

"I never guess, it's a shocking habit." -Sherlock Holmes

[St. Bernhardt]

Can't wait to see the replication of that rustication!

[BriarPipeNYC]

Three PipesProblems:

Eliminate problems:

Harbor Freight sells a hand-held light-duty, cheapo, rotary (SKU# 97286)...."Dremel"-type knockoff.... for about $10.00. It spins just like a Dremel for a fraction of the cost. Chuck some small rotary burrs in the supplied collet, and carve away. That round dent "rustication" in the picture is burr made. Use the cheapo-Dremel to polish oxidized stems, too. If you want a more quality tool, skip this Harbor Freight version. it's strictly made for amateurs or occasional, light-duty use.....but it's perfect for satisfying that pipe-carving jones. BTW, Sharpie markers use alcohol-based "inks" and I've used them (various color combinations) to restain pipes + some ultra fine sandpaper + a little diluted shellac.... will do wonders. EXPERIMENT.......

I "rusticated" many ugly, briar estate-pipes with rotary burrs, and turned cheap pipes into great lookers. Experiment on junk pipes for the wanted effects and staining techniques before you work on a pipe of value. Perhaps the traditional screw-tool and burr rustication = some wheel buffing combinations will do the trick.

Do try all your carving magic on crappy pipes first, for no regrets.

Good luck. You can, and will, do it.

[McGyver]

I was looking at the pic of the pipe on which you were wanting to duplicate the rustication. It might just be my eyes, but it appears that there are patterns in the rustication that don't appear to be from the creator using a dremel type tool or similar.

It almost appears that the maker used either a 2 point or 4 point rounded nub tool to repeatedly mark the pipe. As I look at the pic more, I am leaning more towards a two point as some of the indentations are close to overlapping the ones above. (see pic). If it were a 4 point nib tool, the spacing between all 4 points would be uniform. But the points don't truly line up to a 4 point tool. A 2 point tool though, and the golf ball dimples start to show the pattern. In the circled part, you can see in an couple of points on the pipe they pressed the tool into the wood and the spacing appears to be of a two point tool.

It just seems like there is a uniformity to the size, depth, and distance apart in the dimples. Like I said, it could just be my eyes seeing patterns where they may be none, and as I have never rusticated a pipe, I am speaking from 100% guess.

Attachment 58454

Sorry it turned the pic into an attachment...If you can't click on it, let me know and I will try and re-load it.

[Fr_Tom]

I was looking at the pic of the pipe on which you were wanting to duplicate the rustication. It might just be my eyes, but it appears that there are patterns in the rustication that don't appear to be from the creator using a dremel type tool or similar.

It almost appears that the maker used either a 2 point or 4 point rounded nub tool to repeatedly mark the pipe. As I look at the pic more, I am leaning more towards a two point as some of the indentations are close to overlapping the ones above. (see pic). If it were a 4 point nib tool, the spacing between all 4 points would be uniform. But the points don't truly line up to a 4 point tool. A 2 point tool though, and the golf ball dimples start to show the pattern. In the circled part, you can see in an couple of points on the pipe they pressed the tool into the wood and the spacing appears to be of a two point tool.

It just seems like there is a uniformity to the size, depth, and distance apart in the dimples. Like I said, it could just be my eyes seeing patterns where they may be none, and as I have never rusticated a pipe, I am speaking from 100% guess.

Attachment 58454

Sorry it turned the pic into an attachment...If you can't click on it, let me know and I will try and re-load it.

I can't see the picture, but from your text, this is pretty much my assessment too. The dimples seem to be in repeated pairs.